Sam's Winter Gift
by Vannie.2010
Summary: A Christmas side story. Christmas is going to be at Yukimura's house. Sam has finally made up her mind between Sanada and Kirihara. A hyper Marui from all those sweets he got. Sanada and Kirihara got Sam what? Last Chapter! R&R please.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi Everyone. I felt like doing a Christmas version of _'Will I Make It In Time?_'  
Disclaimer: I do not The Prince of Tennis.**

Note: Rewritten the first two chapters. Thank you to my Beta Readers.  
For you info: This is a side story to _'Will I make it in Time_?'  
This story will not follow what happens in _'Will I make it in Time_?"  
Same characters though.

**Enjoy**. ^^

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Sam's Winter Gift

White fluffs of snow fell from the sky. Winter is here and tomorrow will be Christmas. Marui and Sam walked together in the white flakes of snow to do some last minute Christmas shopping.

"It's so beautiful." Sam whispered softly. She looked up at the sky to see tiny bits of white falling. Sam thought it looked like a white winter wonderland. Sam smiled gently. "Don't you think so, Marui?"

Marui glanced down to his right. "I guess." Marui said, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jacket. He wanted to keep his hands warm. Sam looked up and then she scowled at him. Marui playfully scowled back and then gave a soft smile. "I mean, yeah it's beautiful."

"I don't believe you." Sam said. She turned her head away and didn't look at him. "How come you don't like winter?" she said in a sad tone.

"Sam, I do like winter. It's just the cold I don't like." Marui explained. "I just can't stand how cold it is right now." Sam looked over Marui and now could see why. Marui had on two red sweaters and a black jacket over the two.

"Well, I love winter…an-and I love the cold too." Sam said defending her love for winter. Sam didn't really like the cold temperature but she couldn't admit defeat in front of Marui.

"Heh. I can see that." Marui chuckled.

"I do!" Sam quickly scooped up some snow. She started to compress the snow together into a ball shape. "Let me show you how much I love the snow." Sam said with a smirk.

"Um, Sam…what are you doing?" Marui watched Sam, and started to have a feel something was going to happen. His gut was screaming "Run!", but he totally ignored it.

Sam tossed the snowball repeatedly in the air. "Nothing. I just want you to see why I love winter so much." Sam looked at Marui and aimed.

Marui got the picture. His eyes widen. "WAIT! Hold it Sam!" Marui backed up keeping his arms in front of him. Sam didn't listen. "SAM! Put that snowball down this instant!"

"You're not my father, Marui!" Sam aimed for his head, but Marui moved quickly. "Hold still! I want to get a clear shot at your head." Marui ran. Sam threw.

-Splat!- Sam gasped. She quickly turned around in the other direction and ran for her life.

"SAM!" Niou yelled. His faced covered in snow.

"Are you alright Niou?" Marui asked nicely as he hid behind him. Niou grabbed Marui from behind and shoved him down in the snow. Niou then ran after Sam.

After facing Niou's wrath, well, nothing really bad happened. Yagyuu happened to be nearby and protected Sam from Niou. Marui and Sam then decided to do their Christmas shopping at the mall, after the coast was clear. Marui and Sam walked to the mall. They made sure not to get Niou mad next time.

"What time is it?" Marui asked. Sam looked at her phone.

"It's only 2pm…I have time." Sam replied. Marui nodded. The first place they checked out happened to be a small sports shop.

"Marui. What would Sanada like for Christmas?" Sam asked. She looked at some grip tape in the tennis section.

Marui smiled. "I know he would like you to say 'yes' to him." Sam looked over at Marui, to see him smiling happily at her. Sam turned away from his smile, "Marui. For the last time, I just can't return his feeling towards me."

"Then say 'yes' to Kirihara."

Sam still didn't looked at him, "…I can't return his feelings either."

In the past both, Sanada and Kirihara gathered all the courage they could and had confessed their love to Sam. Of course, Sam was completely surprised that they had 'those' kind of feelings towards her. She only thought of Sanada and Kirihara as very good friends.

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

Flashback-Sanada's confession.

"_You wanted to talk about something, Sanada?" Sam asked. She meet Sanada at their regular table. The burger place had become one of Sam's favorite places to eat out. After Sanada found that out, he'd always took her out to dinner on Saturdays. Sam only thought of it as a place where she could hang out with him._

"_Take a seat." Sanada offered to her. "I have something…personal…to tell you."_

"_What is it?" Sam asked curiously. "Is it about how badly I play tennis? I'm sorry that I'm not there yet. I'm trying my bes-"_

"_No. No, it's not that. Your tennis has improved…its smooth and more graceful-." Sanada stopped on his words. He could feel his face heat up slightly. 'Did I just say that out loud? Smooth and graceful?' Sanada quickly overcame his small blush and replaced with his stoic face._

"_Ok…?" Sam slowly said. She easy saw the visible blush that appeared so fast. She began to think Sanada wasn't feeling well, seeing a flash of red so suddenly, across his face. "…Are you ok, Sanada?"_

"_I'm fine." he said calmly. He tried to regain his composure. 'You can do this Genichirou. Don't back down. That's not who you are. Tell her how you feel…You are Sanada Genichirou! Emperor of Rikkai! Argh! This isn't tennis!...no, I can't do this…' Sanada could feel himself getting frustrated with his feelings._

_Sam got a little worried. She took some napkins and dipped it lightly in her cold water. "Is there something bothering you?"_

_Sanada felt something cold on his cheeks. Sanada reacted too fast without any thought and violently grabbed Sam's wrist. He looked up to see Sam flinched in pain._

"_I'm sorry Sanada! I didn't mean to touch you…" Sam looked away. "…I was worried. I'm sorry!"_

_Sanada felt his world stopped. He couldn't believe what he just did. He let go, and then to see Sam held her wrist with her other hand. He never meant to hurt Sam at all. He never ever wanted to hurt Sam, but to protect her from getting hurt. "Sam-"_

"_I'm sorry." Sam interrupted in a sad tone. She quickly stood up and fast walked out the door, not even looking at him. Once out the door, she ran._

"_Sam!" Sanada ran out the door. "SAM!" He saw her running and he ran after her. In a matter of minutes Sanada stopped her with his arms. He pulled Sam closer to him, his arms wrapping around her._

"_Sam-"_

"_I said I was sorry!" Sam looked up at him in tears. "What?! You want me to run laps to make it more satisfy for you?!"_

"_Shut up!" Sanada yelled. His hold tightened around Sam. "This isn't your fault. I should be the one saying I'm sorry. I'm sorry Sam. I'm sorry that I hurt you." Sanada now didn't care if anybody saw the public display between the two. He felt like it was time to tell the world that he does love someone. Someone besides tennis. Someone he can actually talk to and share a life together. Someone he hopefully marries one day. This someone being Sam. Sam, being the only girl he fell in love with._

"_What's bothering you?" Sam asked quietly. She wanted to get out Sanada's hold because people were beginning to stare. However, she didn't want Sanada to get mad at her._

"…_I've been thinking…" Sanada only replied. His mind drifted off back deep into his thoughts. He didn't mind the people staring at them because he really didn't care anymore._

_After a few minutes of silence, Sanada gained all the courage he could and took a deep breath. "Sam." he said softly breaking the silence._

"_Yeah?" Sam looked at Sanada. She could see his eyes were different…they were a bit softer._

"_I love you." Sanada's voice went soft and sweet. The voice was very rare and where any kind of girl would die to those exact words, but Sam didn't die. He looked deep into her brown eyes. "I love you, Sam."_

_Sam's eyes widen. "Are you sure you're ok? I-I think you need to see a doctor." Sam stuttered. She quickly looked away to hide her faint blush._

"_No. I don't need to see a doctor." Sanada said. "Wait. Why?"_

"_I think you're sick." Sam straight out said. "I've seen this disease before. First, your face turned red all of sudden. You start to hug random people and then-then you start to speak…differently."_

_Sanada glared at her. "You're making that up. I don't need to see a doctor. I'm fine the way I am."_

_Sam didn't pay any attention to him. As sly as possible Sam successfully slipped out of Sanada's arms. 'She won't even listen to what I have to say!' Sanada thought._

"_HEY!" Sanada raised his voice. Sanada quickly grab hold of her wrist. Lighter this time. "Where do you think you're going?!" Sam shrugged like nothing had happen._

"_I don't know…but let's go see that doctor."_

"_Listen!" Sanada let go of her wrist then to bring his hands up to cup her face. The attention around them attracted more people. It was just like a romantic scene. "Nothing is wrong with me. Sam, I love you." He closed his eyes and softly placed his forehead on hers. "I love you."_

_Sam blushed uncontrollably. The words Sanada had said completely surprised her. She gazed her vision around her to see the public smiling and nodded their heads in improvement._

"_Sanada, I-"_

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

Flashback-Kirihara's confession.

"_Sam!" Kirihara shouted out when he spotted Sam walking alone. Sam heard Kirihara and waited for him to catch up._

"_Hi Kirihara." Sam greeted Kirihara with a warm smile._

"_What are you doing walking alone?" Kirihara asked in more of an angry, demand tone. Deeply he didn't want Sam to be walking anywhere by herself. Who know how many guys are out there to take advantage of her. "I'm walking with you."_

"_Okay." Sam smiled. She didn't mind at all._

"_So…where you headed?" Kirihara asked._

_Sam shrugged. "No where. I'm just taking a walk that's all."_

"_You shouldn't be walking alone. Next time, call me and I'll walk with you." Sam didn't want to ask him why instead she only nodded._

"_Ok. I'll call you next time when I take a walk." Sam smiled back at Kirihara. Hearing Sam say that, Kirihara was happy and satisfied that she would be safe. He only nodded once to Sam._

_The two walked in silence. "Sam." Kirihara said breaking the silence between them. "Do…do you like anyone?" Kirihara always wanted to ask Sam, and now he forced himself to finally say what he wanted to say for a long time now. What was more challenging for him was trying hard not to blush and lose his cool._

"_Huh?" Sam looked at Kirihara._

"_Do you like anyone?" Kirihara asked again, more straight out. Kirihara hoped Sam would say 'yes' and let it be him._

"_I don't know." Sam answered with an only shrug._

"_Oh. Well I do." Kirihara smiled a little. For some reason he felt relaxed and that finally he can confess his feelings to Sam. He turned to Sam. "She's really cute too."_

"_Are you two going out? Like dating?" Sam asked, throwing out random questions. Kirihara shook his head._

"_No, but I wish we did."_

"_If you like her that much then I think you should ask her out, I guess." Sam suggested. Kirihara was looking at the ground. He smiled and hint of pink appeared lightly on his cheeks._

"_You think so?"_

_Sam shrugged. "I don't know, something like that…I guess."_

'_Here's my chance.' Kirihara thought. "Well, she has the same height as you. Same dark hat. Same black hair…" Sam looked at him. "…same eyes. Those beautiful brown, chocolate eyes." Kirihara quickly looked away. His blush went out of control. 'Did I just say that?...The words just slipped out…'_

"_You're creeping me out, Kirihara. You make it sound like I have a twin or something…it's creepy." Sam said. She tried to picture someone looking just like her, but she could only picture herself. Kirihara on the other hand was in disbelief, he mentally slapped himself. 'WHAT?! Dammit! I'm describing your eyes!'_

"_Sam. I'm talking about you." Kirihara looked at Sam serious. His blush was gone. "I'm talking about your- beau-beautiful ch-chocolate eyes." He stuttered and his blush returned slightly._

"_Why mine? I thought you talking about someone else?" Sam asked, now confused. Kirihara wished there was a pole he could run into._

"_Sam." Kirihara walked in front of Sam, stopping her from walking. "I like you." He said seriously. Kirihara couldn't believe he said it, but hey, he was about to say it sooner or later. His face started to turn redder from all the blushing he was having now._

"_Huh?" Sam was shocked and surprised to see his face turn red. "Are you ok? Kirihara, your face is turning all red." Sam completely forgot what he said earlier. Kirihara didn't know what else to say to Sam for her to understand. He stood closer to her and put his arms around her into soft hug._

"_Get the picture?" Kirihara asked, holding her close to him._

"_No?" Sam was now lost in Kirihara's actions._

"_Listen carefully, Sam." Kirihara leaned closer to her ear and whispered softly, "I love you."_

_Sam's eyes widen. "Why me? What happened to the other girl you liked?"_

"_There's no other girl! There never was no other girl. The only girl I love is you, Sam." He said._

_Sam stared at Kirihara blankly. "Uh…Kirihara, you used a double negative…which mean there was another girl." Kirihara gapped._

"_I didn't mean it like that!" Kirihara defended. 'I really didn't mean it like that.'_

"_It's alright." Sam shrugged it off. "I just hope your girlfriend will understand." Sam pulled away from Kirihara and continued to walk off. Kirihara quickly grabbed Sam's wrist and spun her around until she faced him._

"_Let me make it clear, Sam. I only love you." Kirihara pulled Sam closer again. "I mean it."_

_He then tried to be romantic, like from a movie he saw once. Trying to be smooth, he turned her hat to the side and smiled at her. Then slow and smooth, he gently placed his forehead on hers. Then the tips of their noses touch. "I love you, Sam."_

_Sam didn't know what to do. Her mind couldn't function. 'Kirihara?' Kirihara started to lift up her head slightly so their lips would meet. –SMACK!-_

_Sam reacted. She didn't know what to do, so her hand reacted by slapping Kirihara across the face. Sam quickly stepped back, away from Kirihara. "You're scaring me, Akaya." Not only does Kirihara's tennis style frighten her, but Kirihara now being romantic was scaring her too._

"_I'm sorry Sam. I shouldn't have tried to kiss you." Kirihara touched his cheek where it sting. 'I'm going to burn that movie when I get home.' he thought to himself. "I really like you…I want to be more than your friend." He looked up at Sam with a serious tone. "I want to be your boyfriend."_

_Sam saw Kirihara wasn't joking at all. He meant it. Sam looked away. "Kirihara I-"_

--------------------

"_I'm sorry…I'm so sorry. I can't return your feelings you have for me." Sam looked away, were her eyes wouldn't met his. "I only see you as my friend…I'm not r-ready for 'that' kind of relationship."_

"_I understand…" Sanada/Kirihara said. "…But my feelings for you won't change." There was a long pause. "Sam…Will you think about it?"_

_Sam nodded slowly. "I'll think about it…but I'm not ready-" Sam couldn't finish her sentence. "I-I have to go. I'm sorry." Sam walked away leaving Sanada/Kirihara standing there._

End of Flashback

Sam never did give Sanada or Kirihara her answer. Instead she avoided it for six months. Without her answer, it really bothered Sanada and Kirihara. Week after week, day after day, the two of them waited for an answer… They never got it. Close, between the second and third month, Sanada and Kirihara gotten use to the fact Sam would never answer that question. But that never stopped Sanada and Kirihara to abandon their feelings for Sam.

The two of them didn't want to be considered a friend to Sam; they wanted to be her boyfriend. After their confession to Sam, the two of them still showed their feeling towards her, but on rare occasion since Sam was uncomfortable. Sanada and Kirihara were more open to her and invited her places here and there on weekends.

Sanada continued to teach her tennis, this time without his teammates help except for Marui. Tennis practice was normal for Sam, because Sanada was more like himself as in a strict and serious co-captain. After practice it was mostly Marui, who waited at walked her home. Sometimes if Kirihara was lucky enough, he got the chance to walk with them. Yukimura still continued on to help Sanada out and tried to get him closer to Sam. So far none of their plans succeeded.

Kirihara hardly had any luck either. He was at a complete disadvantage and had to win Sam's heart alone. He didn't get any help from anyone. The worst part, Yukimura still kept his plans going, to keep him away from Sam. He could never get the time just to talk with Sam. The problem was always either: Sam had tennis practice with Sanada, or Marui was always with her, Yukimura distracted him, had to do Homework or he would fail. There never was a good time for him. Kirihara did everything he could, when he had the time, to get Sam to be his. He watched romantic movies, and read some romantic novels and thought it would help him out to get some ideas.

When Kirihara made his move, it always ended up a smack to the face. The smack was either by Sam or the worst, Sanada. Sanada was enraged when he found out Kirihara had also confessed his feelings to Sam. Sanada thought strongly that Sam shouldn't be with a guy like Kirihara, and that he was also jealous. When the Rikkai Dai tennis team had practice, Sanada played Kirihara very often. Their matches were horrified. Every single tennis member except for Yukimura were scared to play Sanada. They kept their distance.

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

"Marui. I don't want to talk about it." Sam said. "Sanada and Kirihara are only my friends."

"BOY-friends." Marui teased. Sam turned and glared at him. "It was just a joke!" Marui defended.

"Marui.-"

"-I know! I know. You only see them as friends." Marui threw his hands up in air. He knew where this was going because he heard it like the hundredth time from her. For some reason he couldn't stop. He liked teasing her.

"Come on. Let's go check out some other place." Sam said. Marui agreed. The two of them left the sports shop.

After Sanada's ankle recovered, Marui continued to teach Sam tennis when Sanada wasn't around. Sanada wasn't the only one that continued to teach her. With Marui teaching her, Sam is now somewhat skilled. Her strength is mostly her net play and volley skills like Marui. She also picked up some of his net and volley tricks, but Marui is still ten times better than her. Marui had grown close to Sam, being her best friend. None of the other regulars saw it as a problem to see them so close. Sanada approved Marui's tight friendship with Sam. The regulars saw Marui, as close as he is to her, to be her closest friend and who can protect her when they aren't around.

Walking through the mall, Sam and Marui decided to check out the clothes department store.

"How about this one?" Sam held up a black hat to Marui. "Nah. I think Sanada has about fifty of these." Sam exaggerated. She put the hat back.

"I think-" Marui only thought for a split second, then smiled. "-Sanada wants chocolate!"

"Oh yeah…then you end up eating his present once he opens it." Sam said. She could imagine it happening. A smile appeared on her face. '_It would be fun to see anyways_.'

"No I won't." Marui pouted. "I'll 'ask' him if I can have one…maybe two." Sam looked at him like '_yeah right_'. "Ok!...Four top!"

"Don't worry." Sam smiled to Marui. "I'll make some of my home-made Sugar cookies for you. Then you don't have to ask Sanada for any sweets or he'll whack you." Sam laughed lightly.

"Really?!" Marui's eyes sparkled. "THANK YOU!" Marui happily threw his arms up and around Sam. He hugged her tightly. "You know what?! I'll help too so I can learn how to make them." Marui smiled happily and all excited about baking sweets.

"I'm sorry Marui." Sam said. She freed herself from Marui's strong hold. "Yukimura told me that I couldn't let you help me."

"Why not?!"

"Yukimura told me if I told you how to make them…you would bake them every single day." Sam said. "He told me you would get hooked on sugar."

"Seiichi is LYING!" Marui raised his voice. He couldn't believe Yukimura would say such thing to Sam. "I'll only make them on special occasions, like Christmas."

"I'm sorry. Yukimura 'made' me promise him." Sam explained. Marui felt a little hurt. "-But." Marui quickly looked at Sam to see her smiling again at him. "I'll teach you to bake something that is a lot sweeter than sugar cookies." Sam winked at Marui.

"Thank you!" Marui grabbed Sam and pulled her into his arms and hugged her tighter.

"MARUI! I-I can't breath!" Sam tried to gasp for air.

"Oh, sorry." Marui quickly let go. Sam nodded as she tried to get some air in her lungs.

"It's ok. Next time warn me…but Marui. You have to keep it a secret from Yukimura or he'll get mad at me." Marui nodded with a smile on his face.

Marui took one last look around. "There's nothing interesting here. Let's go somewhere else." He said. Sam nodded. They left the department store to look somewhere else. Next they checked out a video game store.

'_What would Kirihara want for Christmas_?' Sam pondered. '_Hmm…He's been asking Yukimura for money to buy a certain video game. Maybe, I could get him that video game_.' "Marui?"

"Yeah?" Marui put back the video game he was looking at and looked over to Sam.

"What's that video game, Kirihara has been asking Yukimura?" she asked him. Marui shrugged.

"I don't know. Something about saving the world or destroying it."

Sam frowned at him. "Thanks for narrowing it down to a million." Sam sighed. "I guess I won't get Kirihara a video game for Christmas."

Three hours later Sam couldn't find the perfect Christmas gift for Sanada, Yukimura, Marui or Kirihara. Sam checked every store in the mall but no luck. Marui however already bought his gifts. Sam told Marui there was another place she wanted to check out across town.

The snow continued to fall from the white cloudy sky. Marui carried his bag of gifts in one hand and Sam walked beside him in silence. He glanced down and saw her looking frustrated. "Sam. If I were you I would give Sanada or Kirihara something personal. Something that they wouldn't forget."

Sam was curious. She looked up at Marui, to see him grinning. "What should I give them then?"

"A kiss." smiled Marui. Sam eyes widen.

"Not THAT personal!" she exclaimed. Marui laughed lightly. He always liked teasing her, especially when he got to see her cute reaction. Then felt a little push against his arm.

"I'm sorry." he said. He tried to control his light laugh.

"You just like to tease me." Sam said as she looked away.

"I said I was sorry." Marui tried to look at her, but Sam looked farther away from him. Sam noticed a Bookstore across the street.

'_That's it_.' Sam thought. She tugged on Marui's jacket. "Marui. I know what to get now." Instead of waiting for an answer, Sam grabbed hold of Marui's hand and pulled him across the street to the bookstore. "Wait for me here."

"Wait. You don't want me to go in with you?" Marui asked. Sam shook her head.

"It's a surprise."

Sam quickly walked into the store, leaving Marui out in the cold. "But Sam! It's cold out HERE!" It was too late for the front door closed. '_You better not take that long_.'

Twenty minutes later. "Ok Marui, I'm done…Marui?" Sam walked out carrying a large blue bag. She looked at Marui with a surprised look. Marui was wearing a brand new scarf, gloves and another coat.

"What took you so long? I'm freezing out here."

Sam could hear his voice trembling. She could see Marui shivering. Sam looked at her cell phone to see it was only 5:58pm. '_I have time_.' "I'm sorry Marui. Let me make it up to you." Sam locked her arm around his. "Let's go get some Hot Chocolate. I'll buy."

Marui nodded. "Make sure my hot chocolate is extra sweet with whip cream. Maybe some extra sprinkles on top to make me feel better. Then I would like a strawberry shortcake-"

Sam glared. "Hey! I said only hot chocolate not one of everything! If you want cake-buy it yourself!"

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**Review please. Thank you. ^^  
Don't worry, this is only long chapter in this story. Rest are fairly alright.**

MyPrinceOishi08.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Prince of Tennis.  
Thank you to my Beta Readers.**

Enjoy. ^^

* * *

"Do you know what you're going to get Sam for Christmas?" smiled Yukimura. He walked along, in the falling snow, besides Sanada.

"No. I don't know yet." Sanada answered. "I was thinking of getting her some chocolate, I guess."

"Genichirou!" Sanada flinched at Yukimura's small outburst. He turned to look at him. "You can't get her chocolate! Chocolates are only sweets that last for a small amount of time. You, Genichirou, need to get her something that will make her fall in love with you...forever."

Sanada sighed, "I don't know what to get her, Seiichi."

"You want to be with her, right?" Yukimura asked with a smile. Yukimura already knew what Sanada would say. Sanada nodded slowly.

Yukimura smiled. "You want to hold her in your arms? Kiss her?" Sanada barely nodded with a tiny hint of pink on his cheeks. Yukimura's smile grew slightly. He continued. "You want to be her knight and shining armor?"

"Seiichi." Sanada quickly said. He didn't want Yukimura to continue even though it was true. "You're getting carried away."

"But you do right?" Yukimura looked at him serious.

Sanada couldn't deny it. He really did want to be Sam's true love. "You don't need to know." Sanada said instead of answering his yes/no question. Yukimura only chuckled.

"Fine. Then all we need to do is to find something that will last forever. Something that every time Sam sees it, she will think of you. That's one way you can win her heart, and she will belong to you." Yukimura said.

"So, what should I get Sam?"

"Hmm...That's the question." Yukimura simply said.

Sanada was dumbfounded. "You tell me all this romantic mushy stuff and you don't know what I should get for Sam?!"

"Hey. I've been helping you out, Genichirou. You should be thankful." Yukimura said.

"Yeah, and all your plans failed so far. You even made Niou end up in the hospital for two days." Sanada reminded him. "Look Seiichi. It's been six months and she doesn't see me any differently."

"Fine. If it was me, I would have taken her to Paris." smiled Yukimura. Sanada glared at Yukimura when he wasn't looking.

"Keep dreaming, Seiichi." Then Sanada noticed a store and had an idea. "Hey Seiichi. Let's go check that place out."

Yukimura noticed the place Sanada was talking about and smiled brightly. "That's perfect."

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

-DING!- Kirihara woke up by the sound of the oven timer. "It's about time." Kirihara walked over to the oven. He gripped his hand around the handle and pulled down the oven door. He smiled. "It looks good."

He put on the oven mittens and carefully pulled out his creation. Kirihara placed his creation on the top of the stove. _'After the eighth cake, this has to be the perfect one I baked so far_.' A smiled formed on his lips.

Kirihara's mother walked into the kitchen. Her eyes widen in shock. "Akaya! What did you do in here?!"

The kitchen was a disaster. Flour spilled everywhere, egg shells scattered all over the kitchen table, and the sliver mixing bowls pilled up in the sink. Even Kirihara was a mess. Kirihara grinned nervously and scratched the back of his head. "Hi mom…I'll clean the mess up, but LOOK!" Kirihara smiled and held out the cake in front his mother.

Forgetting about the tornado disaster, she smiled. "Is that cake for Sam?" Kirihara nodded shyly with a blush appearing across his face. "It's ok, Akaya. You take you time decorating that cake for Sam. I'll clean this mess up." Kirihara's mother said as she grabbed a wash cloth.

After the mess was cleaned up, Kirihara's mother noticed Kirihara sitting quietly on the table staring at the cake. "You know, the cake won't decorate itself." she said. She walked over and sat next to Kirihara.

"Mom, I don't know how to decorate a cake...I want to make this one special." Kirihara said.

"Let me help you out Akaya. When I was young I use to decorate wedding cakes." Kirihara's mother giggled. Kirihara blushed deeply.

"Thanks mom, but it doesn't have to be a wedding cake."

"I know." she smiled sweetly. White soft icing spread carefully across the top of the cake. "By the way, Akaya sweetie. You bake this cake really good, I know she'll love it."

Kirihara's face turned redder. "T-Thanks mom."

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

"I'm so tired." Sam said sleepy. He fell and let her soft bed catch her. She was ready to fall deep into her sleep when her phone rang. –RING!- '_Argh! Let me sleep!_' –RING!-

"What do you want?!" Sam yelled into her phone.

"Hey Sam, its Niou. Listen. I want to take you out to dinner." Niou said straight out.

"No. Bye." Sam dropped her phone on the bed. She was too tired to hang up and too tired to even care.

"Don't be like that." Niou continued. Sam grabbed the phone and pulled it up to her ear.

"Why not?! I went shopping with Marui and I'm tired." Sam said. She closed her eyes, the phone still to her ear. "…Niou?" Sam said calmly this time.

"What?"

"Are you still mad at me when I threw that snowball at your face?" Sam blushed a bit. No answer. "…I'm sorry Niou."

"Why did you do it?" Niou asked.

"I didn't mean to hit you. I was showing Marui why I like winter so much." Sam said. "Then you got in the way…or should I say Marui ran and hid behind you."

"Do you want dinner or not?" Niou asked in a serious tone. Sam frowned.

"I told you I'm tired and you know how my mother is." Sam said in a sad tone. "She still doesn't want me hanging out with you guys. It's already past 7pm."

Sam's mother was furious when she found out that her daughter had been playing tennis and hanging out with boys. She had to hear the news through Sanada when he was by Sam's side, after the horrible car accident. Completely angry and her daughter's condition she made the toughest decisions and sent Sam to America. America, where the man she divorced and left lived. Sending Sam to America didn't solve the tennis and boy problem…Marui and Yanagi ended up going to America with Sam to continue to train her. Returning to Japan…nothing stopped Sam from playing tennis and the friendship with the Rikkai regulars. Sam sneaked out often and even ran away, which caused a lot of police involvement. In the end, Sam's mother took the upper hand and made a deal with her. Tennis only on Saturdays during the day, and she could only go out from 1-7pm on weekdays.

"Sounds like she still hates us." Niou said in a not caring tone. "Are you going to sneak out?"

"…I don't know. I want to but I'm tired." Sam said.

"Come on. Just lock your door and climb out the window like last time." Niou said. "I'm already waiting across the street."

"What?!" Sam quickly got up and walked over her window with phone in hand. She saw Niou staring at her from across the street. Sam frowned. "…Do I even have a choice now?"

Niou hanged up and started to walk across the street. He sneaked to her side of the house where her room was on the second floor. He looked up.

Sam sighed and hanged up. She walked over and quietly locked her door. She then grabbed her jacket and walked back to her window and opened it. "It's icy, so if I die it's your fault." Sam whispered to Niou, to only see him smirk back at her.

Sam slowly climbed out of the window. Niou got impatience. "Just jump off. I'll catch you." Sam did what she was told. She jump and Niou caught her with ease.

"Let's hurry and get out of here." Sam quickly said.

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

The two walked in silence. Sam glanced up at Niou. "…Hey Niou…Why do you want to take me out to dinner?"

"My Christmas gift to you so shut up and don't ask again." Niou said without looking at her. Sam looked down at the ground and smiled a little.

"Thank you." Sam said softly. Niou smirked.

"Don't worry about it. I won't be able to celebrate Christmas with you guys tomorrow so I might as well do it today." Niou shrugged.

Sam thought for a moment. She frowned. "Heeey!" She stopped. Niou stopped walking a turned around to face her.

"What?"

"Am I going to pay?" Sam asked. "You made me sneak out just so you could get a free dinner out of me?!" She glared at him. Niou stared at her then smirked.

"That's what friends are for, right?" He continued to walk.

Sam bent down and scooped some snow and made a snowball. "JERK!" Sam almost threw it when Niou turned around and faced her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He said. He looked at her serious like if she did it, there would be revenge. Sam threw the snowball anyways but in a different direction. The snowball hit another guy.

"HEY!" The guy yelled. He looked like he was the one who was going to get revenge. Sam gasped and pointed at Niou.

"HE DID IT!"

Niou turned to glare at her but she wasn't there. Instead he saw Sam running down the street. "BRAT! Get your ass back here!"

"NO!" Sam shouted in a childish tone and continued on running. Niou ran after her. The guy tried to run after the two but he got tired quickly and gave up.

Niou ran and caught up to Sam without any problems. Next thing that happened…Sam was being carried over Niou's shoulder. "Put me down! I got legs you know!" Sam pouted but no success.

Niou carried Sam to decent restaurant. "Niou. I want to go back home."

"Why?"

Sam blushed. "I-I don't have any money on me. I can't afford this kind of place." she said after Niou put her down.

Niou rolled his eyes and pushed Sam through the door. "I told you earlier, don't worry about it. I'll be paying for the food."

"Wha?" Sam was surprised. Niou then dragged Sam to an empty table.

"Order what you want." Niou straight out said after they were seated. He didn't look from his menu. Sam nodded.

**.Sanada.|.Sam.|.Kirihara.**

"Thanks." Sam smiled and thanked Niou for dinner. Niou only nodded. Niou paid for dinner and now the two were walking. Sam pulled out her phone and looked at the time.

"Niou. I should be going back home…it's almost 10pm." Sam said sadly. Niou ignored her.

"Sam. Here." Niou pulled out a small red velvet box. "Yanagi, Jackal, Yagyuu and I all bought you a Christmas gift. Merry Christmas." Niou tossed the gift to Sam. Sam caught it.

"Thanks." Sam said. "I'll open it on Christmas." Sam smiled and put it in her coat pocket.

"So. What are you going to be doing tomorrow?" Niou asked.

"Nothing much. Just going to hang out and have Christmas at Yukimura's house." Sam said.

"Have you decided on the luckily guy yet? You know I'm still available." Niou smirked.

Sam shook her head. "No I haven't thought about it and I don't want to think about it." Both of them stopped walking and stood under a covered area where the snow wouldn't fall on top of them. Niou leaned against the wall.

"It's been six months and they're waiting for an answer from you." Sam leaned against the wall too, next to him.

"To tell you the truth…I don't really know what to think." Sam admitted which Niou raised a brow. "I love both Sanada and Kirihara…I love all of you guys, but as a brother. I think of you as my older brothers."

Niou patted on top of Sam's head. "Aww, that's sweet…'tiny sister'." Sam pushed his hand away.

"Hey! I'm not tiny!" Sam looked away. Niou laughed lightly and pulled Sam into a 'brotherly' hug.

"I'm kidding, 'kay?" Niou smirked. Sam tried to pull herself out of the hug but she was too tired to even try. Niou held her close. "Think about it 'kay? You know you should stop thinking about yourself and think about them. Sanada and Kirihara both love you and confessed to you. You know that's a lot of guts for a guy to say that kind of stuff. Especially if it's coming from Sanada and the other brat."

Sam fell silent. Niou knew she was thinking about it. "Everyday Sanada waits for an answer. I know he wants to hear a 'yes' from you, but if you don't feel the same. At least tell him no, so that way he doesn't have wait anymore. Same thing goes for Kirihara. How would you like it if you told a guy your confession and he never gave you an answer?" Niou raised a brow and looked down at Sam.

"…" Sam looked at the snow instead of him. Niou continued.

"You wouldn't like it would you? Sanada and Kirihara have waited patiently for six months…and you know that's a long time. If it was me I would forget all about the girl and pull something on her instead, but that's who I am."

Sam didn't say anything. Niou didn't really care and continue to hug Sam closely.

"…I think its weird hearing this stuff coming from you." Sam said in quiet voice. Niou shrugged. "But thank you for telling me this, Niou. I guess I didn't really think about Sanada or Kirihara's feelings…"

"I think you're just afraid of getting out of your comfort zone. Are you scared of taking that kind of step?" Sam slowly nodded to Niou's question.

"It's best for you make a decision and tell them an answer." Niou said in a brotherly tone. "Do you want to go home now?"

Sam shook her head. "I rather sleep out in the cold instead of going back home." Sam then yawned. "Can I…stay at your…hou-" Sam started to doze off. Niou smirked at scooped her up in his arms. Sam was too tired to keep herself wake and ended up falling asleep. She didn't really worry about herself, because for some reason she'd trusted Niou.

Niou decided it was better to take her back to her house. After the walk in the middle of the night, he took her back home. Niou was able to sneak Sam back to her room without getting caught. First he pick locked the front door and carried her quietly upstairs and then sneaked out the window and headed home.

* * *

**Review please. Thank you. ^^  
I'm sorry if Niou was out of character.**

MyPrinceOishi08.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Prince of Tennis.  
Enjoy.**

* * *

The special day had arrived. It was Christmas. It had been decided that they were going to have Christmas at Yukimura's house.

"Hey Genichirou, where's your present?" asked Yukimura looking around the room. Sanada had come over early to help Yukimura decorate before the others came over.

"I put him in your room." said Sanada. He was putting the colorful lights around the tree.

"You what?! It's going to mess up my room."

"Don't worry, its sleeping. Also it's not the type to do anything like that." explained Sanada.

"Alright, I trust you Genichirou. Anyways, I have something that might work this time." smiled Yukimura. Sanada looked at Yukimura with a questioning look. "What might work?"

"Getting you together with Sam. " Yukimura said with one of his best smiles.

Outside on Yukimura's doorstep, Kirihara had arrived to help decorate too. He was about to ring the doorbell when he overheard Yukimura. He decided to listen.

"It's called mistletoe. In America you hang this over two people. It's a tradition thing that if you two are under the mistletoe, you two kiss each other." explained Yukimura.

"Really?" Kirihara heard Sanada say. Then he heard Yukimura's voice again. "Yup. This can be your first kiss…and also with the girl you love."

Back outside Kirihara was surprised and interested in this mistletoe thing. "Mistletoe huh?" he said quietly. "I have to kiss Sam under the mistletoe before Sanada does." Kirihara smirked. '_Wait for me under the mistletoe, Sam_.'

DING DONG.

**xXx**

Later Sam and Marui made to Yukimura's house. Now everyone was here. Marui and Sam were in the kitchen cooking. Sanada and Yukimura were still decorating the living room. Kirihara sat on the couch upside down. He was bored to death. Kirihara was told to not touch anything, so he has been watching TV the whole time.

"Can we open our presents now?!" complained Kirihara. "I'm BORED!"

"Shut up, Kirihara." ordered Sanada, putting the last object on the Christmas tree. The star.

"Watch some movies." Yukimura suggested.

"I already seen all the movies you have, Yukimura." the bored Kirihara said. Then a question popped in his head. "Yukimura, can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?" asked Yukimura holding the ladder steady for Sanada.

"What does mistletoe look like?" The question Kirihara asked surprised Yukimura. Yukimura barely flinched, causing the ladder to jiggle a little. "Hey. Hold the ladder steady." warned Sanada. Sanada regained his balance again.

"Sorry about that Genichirou." apologized Yukimura. Then he looked over at Kirihara. "Sorry Akaya, I don't know what a mistletoe looks like."

'_Liar_.' Kirihara thought as he got up. He left into the kitchen. The first thing he saw when he enter the kitchen…a very hyper Marui.

"AKAYA! YOU GOT TO TRY SOME OF THESE SUGAR COOKIES!!" Marui happily screamed out loud. He grabbed about 20 sugar cookies and ran into the living room. "I LOVE YOU SAM!" he said with his loud voice. Sam and Kirihara could clearly hear Marui shout in the living room to Sanada and Yukimura. "YOU GUYS GOT TO TRY THESE!"

Sam giggled, "I think sugar cookies weren't made for Marui." Kirihara's heart skipped a beat when he heard her cute laugh. He always was struck when Sam smiled or laughed so sweetly. He would do anything to keep that beautiful smile smiling. Sam noticed Kirihara.

"Oh, Hi Kirihara." smiled Sam. Kirihara smiled back at her. "Hey." Kirihara watched Sam fix up some salad. "Merry Christmas Sam." he said happily.

Sam looked at Kirihara, "Thank you. Merry Christmas to you too." she smiled again at him.

"Can I ask you a question?" Kirihara asked. Sam nodded, "Sure. Go ahead."

"What does mistletoe look like?"

"Um…There's one on the table in front of you." Sam said. She headed over to the sink to get a paper towel and wiped her hands. Kirihara saw the mistletoe sitting on the table. He saw the small green leaf plant. It had small what look like white beads attached. He smirked.

"Sam, what does mistletoe do?" he asked as he picked it up from the table. Kirihara slowly walked up behind Sam and held the mistletoe above the two.

"Um…" Sam turned around to see Kirihara stand there. Her eye's followed his arm up to see the mistletoe above them. Sam's face turned bright red. "_He knows…_?" Kirihara smirked. Then he slowly lowered and lean in closer to Sam.

Sanada walked in the kitchen, holding Marui in the air by the back of his shirt. "Sam. How much sugar did you gave Maru-" Sanada suddenly stood in shock. He saw Kirihara holding the mistletoe and his face was only inches from Sam's.

Marui, hanging in the air, was stuffing his face with sugar cookies. When he didn't hear Sanada he looked up and saw what had stop Sanada. His eyes widen, "Oh." At that moment Sanada let go of Marui. Thanks to gravity, Marui hit the tile floor face first.

"KIRIHARA!!" Sanada yelled. Once Kirihara heard Sanada's angry voice, he quickly hid the mistletoe behind his back and turned to Sanada. Kirihara was scared. "I didn't do anything." he quickly said with his voice trembling.

"...I can't break the tradition." Sam said. She leaned up over to Kirihara and kissed him on the cheek. Kirihara blushed. Sanada stood in disbelief. '_Did she just do that_?!'

"Come on Marui." Sam said as she walked over and helped Marui up. Sam whispered to Sanada, "Sanada. Please don't hurt him. It's Christmas."

Sanada didn't take his angry eyes off of Kirihara. "Fine." He followed behind Sam and Marui into the living room. "_You're one lucky brat_." he thought to himself.

Kirihara stood there in the kitchen. He slowly touched his cheek where Sam kissed him. '_Christmas is the best holiday_!'

* * *

**Thank you for reading. Review please.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Prince of Tennis.  
Enjoy!**

* * *

Everybody gathered in the living room. It was time for presents. Sanada and Sam both sat together on the love couch. Yukimura sat in his own arm chair. Marui and Kirihara sat on the floor. Don't know why they just sat on the floor.

"OPEN MINE FIRST, SAM!" smiled Marui. He quickly gave Sam his gift. After all those sugar cookies, Marui was still a hyper. It was large gift bag with the pictures of milk and cookies. The background printed with red and green colors.

"Ok, Marui." smiled Sam. She opened the bag and removed the red and green tissue paper. The sweetest smile appeared on her face. Sam pulled out a small box that had the words saying _'Chocolate covered cherries'_. "Thank you for the chocolate, Marui."

"Its not all chocolate. There's candy, bag of marshmallows, box of doughnuts, cookies, more chocolate, bubble gum, apple candy-"

"-OK MARUI, we get the idea." interrupted Kirihara. Marui scowled at him. "Fine meanie. Here's yours." Marui handed another gift bag to Kirihara. More like he tossed at him. Then he gave Sanada and Yukimura theirs too.

"Thank you." smiled Yukimura as he pulled out a box of doughnuts. Marui had given everyone the same kind of gift only different flavors.

"Thanks." said Sanada. '_Hope I don't get hyper on sugar like Marui does_.'

Then everybody stared at Kirihara. Kirihara looked over to Marui, "Thank…you…Marui." he said slowly. Already forgave him, Marui hugged Kirihara. "I KNEW YOU WOULD LIKE IT!"

"Get off me." Kirihara demanded, pushing Marui away. Marui didn't care. A thank you from Kirihara was enough to keep him in a good mood.

"I'll go next." smiled Yukimura getting up from his arm chair. He went over and grabbed two wrapped gifts from under the Christmas tree. "Here Kirihara." Yukimura handed him a small wrapped box. Then he handed Sanada a bigger one. At the same time they opened their gifts.

Kirihara quickly ripped the wrapping paper to shreds. His eyes widen. In his hands were the video games he'd been asking Yukimura. "THANKS YUKIMURA!"

Sanada unwrap his gift. After he tore off the wrapper, a smile appeared across his face. "Thanks Seiichi." he said. On his lap was a pair of brand new black sport shoes and also a black cap.

"I'm glad you guys like It." smiled Yukimura. "This one is for you." he handed Sam a tiny gift. "Thank you Yukimura." smiled Sam back at him. She opened her present. Inside the tiny box was placed with a sliver necklace with a small dark blue tennis racket hanging. "I love it!" Sam said happily.

"Sanada can help you." a smirk appeared on Yukimura's face. Sam turned to Sanada. "Can you put it on for me?" Sanada nodded, taking the necklace and putting it around Sam's neck.

"Thank you Sanada." smiled Sam. Sanada got tiny tingles of butterflies in his stomach. To him it felt like they were a couple that one special moment. Luckily Kirihara wasn't paying any attention; he was too busy staring at his new video game. 'That was a smart move, Seiichi.' thought Sanada. Finally one plan worked.

"HEY! Where's MY gift?!" Marui asked. He watched the whole thing between the two and found it amusing. However he wanted his present.

"Oh. Sorry about that Marui. It's in the freezer." smiled Yukimura. Marui sprinted into the kitchen. Then the next thing that happened is that Marui started to squeal very loudly. "AH! ICE CREAM! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!"

In the living room Sam started to laugh, "I thought Marui wasn't hyper anymore, I guess I was wrong."

"Seiichi. Why did you get Marui Ice Cream in the middle of winter?" questioned Sanada. "It doesn't make sense."

"That's Marui favorite. He likes to eat Ice Cream in the middle of winter." said Yukimura. "I don't know either. He hates the cold but he loves Ice Cream…in the winter."

Everybody had questioning looks but they just shrugged it off.

"Mine next!" Kirihara said. Before he gave Sanada, Yukimura and Sam's present he shout towards the kitchen, "MARUI! YOUR IS IN THE REFRIGERATOR!"

Then they Marui heard squealing in the kitchen. "THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!" Marui was getting over excited…

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**Thanks for reading. Reviews are helpful.  
Sorry if the characters are OOC.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Here is the last piece of the Christmas Story. I hoped all you had a great Merry Christmas!  
Disclaimer: I do not own The Prince of Tennis.**

Enjoy the end of this side story.

* * *

"Sam. Merry Christmas." Kirihara said softly. He placed a medium/heavy box on her lap. "I had to get rid of Marui, so…Merry Christmas." Kirihara slowly slide the top of the box off.

Sanada and Yukimura eyes widen. Sam's eyes began to water. "…Kirihara…" she said softly. There on her lap was the most beautiful cake. It looked like it was done by professionals. White icing coated the cake. All around the top of the cake were placed what looked like beautiful blue roses made of frosting. Smooth mix colors of blue flow around the side of the cake. The beautiful blue colors blended softly with the white.

"Did you seriously make that?" the surprised Sanada asked. He stared at that cake for a long time.

"Well, my mom helped me out." admitted Kirihara. Yukimura didn't know what to say. No words would come out. Sam moved the cake over to Sanada's lap. Tears slowly trail down her face. She quickly stood up and walked to the kitchen.

"What? Did I do something wrong?" asked Kirihara. He was surprised Sam started to cry and left.

Yukimura finally spoke, "No. You didn't do anything wrong, Kirihara. She's deeply touch by your gift."

"So what did you get Marui?" Sanada asked, after the long stare at the cake. "Did you make him something like this one?"

"No. I got him regular-"

Marui busted out the kitchen door. "Who made Sam cry?!" shouted the hyper Marui. The three guys stared at Marui. They could see the chocolate all around his mouth. They knew when it came to too much sweets, Marui was a messy eater. Then Marui saw the beautiful cake on Sanada's lap. His eyes began to sparkle brightly. "Is that what made Sam cry?!"

No one responded. An idea was stirring in Marui's head. "Since that tasty good-looking cake made Sam cry, I'll dispose of it."

Kirihara eyes widen huge. "NO! You're NOT going to lay ONE FINGER or MOUTH on THIS CAKE!!" Kirihara grabbed the cake out of Sanada's lap before Marui did, and made a run for it. So Kirihara ended up running around Yukimura's house with the cake while Marui chased after him.

"Here Sanada. It's from Kirihara." smiled Yukimura, handing Sanada's gift from Kirihara. Yukimura had his in his hand. From Kirihara, Sanada and Yukimura both received one of their favorite grip tapes.

Somewhere in the house, Marui had Kirihara cornered. "You can't have it!" Kirihara guarded the cake. "PLEASE!!" Marui begged. "NO!"

Sam, feeling much better, walked over to them. "Marui. Leave Kirihara alone, I'll let you have a slice." Then Marui was out of sight. "Thank you Kirihara." smiled Sam. Kirihara handed the cake over to Sam. Both of them returned back to the living room.

"YOUR NEXT SANADA!" smiled Marui. Everyone could see Marui eyes glittering to Sanada. Sanada sighed deeply, "Yours is on the counter next to the fridge."

"YAH!" Marui ran back into the kitchen. "AH! I LOVE YOU SANADA! I LOVE YOU GUYS!!" shouted Marui, with squeals and excitement included.

"What did you get Marui?" Sam asked.

Silence.

"…Well?" Yukimura looked at Sanada seriously.

"A Strawberry short cake, and…" Sanada paused. Kirihara stared at him, "…And?"

"…and a year supply of bubble gum." Everyone jaw's dropped down. "Hey! They were on sale, ok!" Sanada said defending himself.

Yukimura got some cool casual clothes and his CD's from his favorite band group. Kirihara got more video games. "Thanks." both of them thanked Sanada.

Yukimura smiled widely, "It's time for Sam's present." Sanada nodded. He got up and left to Yukimura's bedroom. Yukimura went behind Sam and covered her eyes. Kirihara was too busy playing his new video game. He couldn't wait 'til he got home, so he started to play it at Yukimura's house with his game system. Marui was eating his sweets while watching Kirihara play.

Sanada returned to the living room with the cute little guy. Sanada got down on his knees in front of Sam. "Merry Christmas Sam." Sanada said sweetly. Yukimura uncovered her eyes. Sam saw him and a smile appeared her lips.

Marui looked over. "A PUPPY!!" he exclaimed. "LET ME SEE! LET ME SEE!" Marui ran over and took the tiny black puppy from Sanada arms. "IT'S SOOO CUTE!"

"Marui!" Sanada raised his voice. But then he felt someone around him. It took Sanada a few seconds to understand that Sam had her arms around him, hugging him. "Thank you Genichirou." Sam said softly holding him closer. Sanada couldn't continue his anger on Marui; instead he wrapped his arms around Sam. "Your welcome." he said softly.

Yukimura smiled. '_Finally. Six months of hard work has finally paid off_.'

'_I guess you won Sanada_.' thought Kirihara. He didn't see what had happen, but he could tell Sam made up her mind between the two. He knew she made up her mind when she said Sanada's first name. Kirihara turned and looked at Marui holding the tiny black puppy.

The puppy was really cute. It had beautiful green eyes, and soft healthy black fur. It was the type of puppy that would grow up to be loyal and protect the owner.

'_You won Sam fair and square_.' Kirihara thought. He wasn't mad or anything, but upset that it wasn't him. Kirihara had been in love with Sam for nearly half a year. He showed her he cared and did everything to keep her happy, but then so did Sanada. Kirihara then decided that it was the best for her to be with Sanada, and that he would be there for her anytime. He went back to playing his game.

**xXx**

"Ok. Open them!" smiled Sam. The four of them opened their gifts Sam got them. Suddenly the looks on their faces were emotionless and hard. More like '_Are you serious Sam_?' Sam saw their hard reaction and started to laugh.

Yukimura was holding the book, '_**Learn how to mind your own business**_.'

Sanada had one in his hand called, '_**1 Billion ways to Giggle, Smile and Laugh**_.'

Kirihara had, '_**Learn English the Hard way**_.'

Marui stared at his book, '_**Your "Sweet"-heart is going to kill you**_.'

Sam couldn't help but keep laughing. "Your MEAN!" they all said and threw their books at her, but not too hard that it hurt. Then again, they couldn't stay mad at her. "Thanks." all of them said.

"Look in them." Sam said, handing the books back to them. In certain pages of the book, they could see it was bookmarked.

Yukimura opened his book to where it was marked. "_**People might think your making up their minds for them. Getting into their personal life and making decisions for them the way you want it to be. They hate that. However, there is a time your decision really helped out a person's life, even in the hardest decision that they can't make themselves**_."

Personal note: "_Thank you, Yukimura. It's been hard to see that two wonderful guys love me. Everyday I have to face both of them. My heart aching that these two, Sanada and Kirihara, love me for me. You keep pushing Sanada closer and closer to me. You always wanted me to be near him, or him near me. You wanted Sanada and I to be together since the first day you heard about me. But you helped me see more and more about Sanada personally. I guess all that pushing you did lead my heart to feel more towards Sanada. Without you, I would still between the two. –Sam. PS. Merry Christmas_." A smile appeared on Yukimura's face.

Sanada turned to marked page in his funny joke book. "_**Why did the Chicken cross the road? –To get to the other side**_." '_That's just stupid_.' thought Sanada.

Personal Note: "_Sanada. I never really seen you smile or laugh. You have this poker face on you, like 24/7. When I saw this book I thought of you. Yes, I do think about you. After you told me you love me, I was confused. I really didn't think you had those kinds of emotions. Now it's been nearly half a year since you told me and three fourths of year since I first saw you. Since that day you saved me. Now I got to know you more personally. You just need to smile more…for me? –Sam. PS. Merry Christmas_."

Kirihara looked at his. Written on the inside cover it said, **"(In English.) Everything and Anything is possible. All you need to do is stick with it 'til the End**." Kirihara just stared at those words. '_What the heck does that mean? I didn't understand a single word_.'

Personal Note: "_Kirihara. I know English is your worst subject and I know it's a hard language to learn. Once you understand what it means then there is nothing that can stop you, but you. I wanted to tell you Thank you for everything you have done for me. I'll anyways be your friend and be there to help you in anyway I can. You've been a great friend and I want to be a great friend in return. This isn't goodbye, and it will never be. –Sam. PS. Merry Christmas_."

Marui opened his book. At first it was shut tight but Marui found a way to open it, but when he did there wasn't a single page. Inside the book, the pages were cut out and it had a big hole in the middle. Marui smiled happily. Guess what, inside that hole was filled with candy. "THANK YOU SAM!" There was a note sticking out from the side.

Personal Note: "_Hey Marui. I know how much you love sweets. Ha Ha, this can be your secret stash for your candies. Merry Christmas, Marui. You're the greatest best friend I have ever had. I love you as a brother. –Sam. PS. don't tell Yukimura, but the recipe for the sugar cookie is on the bottom_."

That was the present Sam had given everyone. Something personal.

"Hey Sam. Do you really want us to read these?" asked Yukimura. Sam shook her head and smiled. "No, the books were just for fun."

**xXx**

After everyone opened their presents, they all went and ate lunch together in the kitchen. Lunch was peaceful and they had a good time together. Afterwards Yukimura, Sanada, and Kirihara got competitive in playing the video games.

"HEY! You CHEATED!" outburst Kirihara. Sanada only smirked. Kirihara began to press the control buttons harder.

"NO! YOU KILLED MY GUY!" Kirihara whined after he lost against Sanada. "I'm next." smiled Yukimura taking the controller from Kirihara. The three of them played video games for a long time. They were trying to see who was better at playing video games.

Sam sat on the couch watching the guys play video games, while she softly stroke Marui's hair. Marui was lying on the couch, his head resting on Sam's lap. Marui was sleeping. After eating all those sweets and the hyperness he had, his body got tired. Marui was sleeping soundly while Sam slowly stroked his hair. Sam's tiny little friend was sitting next to her sleeping as well.

**xXx**

It was getting late. Marui and Kirihara left early. Sanada and Sam stayed after to help take everything down. After everything was cleaned up and put away, Sanada walked Sam home.

It snowed softly during their walk. Sam carried her puppy in her arms while Sanada carried the gifts they received. He offered to carry her things since she was carrying her puppy. They talked to each other during the walk.

"So, have so picked a name for your new friend?" Sanada asked. "Um. I was thinking Gen." Sam said sweetly, smiling at Sanada. "Then Gen it is." said Sanada.

"Sanada. I have been thinking…I've decided to give us a chance." Sam looked at Gen's green eyes. Sanada turned to look at her, "Chance at what?"

"I've decided to give you a chance…me being your girlfriend." Sam told him. Sanada smiled one of his rare smiles. "Thank you. Thank you for giving me a chance."

Sam nodded. "But. I have no idea how to. I mean, I never dated anybody." Sam admitted. Sanada nodded, "That's ok. I never had a girlfriend…well, I never wanted a girlfriend."

They talked some more. The next thing they know it, the two of them stood on Sam's porch. "Thank you for walking me home Sanada." smiled Sam.

"Genichirou. You can call by my first name." Sanada said softly. Sam's face turned a bit red. "Genichirou." she said slowly. It felt weird calling him that since she was so use to calling him Sanada. Sanada smiled.

"Well, thank you again San- I mean Genichirou." Sam said then walked to the door.

Sam opened the door half way when she felt Sanada reached his hand over and softly grabbed hold of her wrist. "What is it?" she asked turning to look at Sanada. "You forgot your present." he holds out the bag with the box in it carrying half of the beautiful cake in there and also the sweets from Marui.

Sam rolled her eyes. "I know that. I was going to put Gen inside first and come back." Sanada let go of her. Sam put Gen inside and returned back out on the porch. "See? I'm back." she said. It made Sanada smile for some reason. "Ok. Here you go." He had the bag to her.

With her hands full, Sanada made his move. He cupped her cheeks in his warm hands and lean in. He kissed her softly on the lips. Sanada placed his forehead on hers after their kiss. "Why did you-?"

"I did it because I love you. I waited six months to kiss you." he said softly.

"Well, you know what! I hate you!" Sam said staring into his eyes. Sanada was surprise, "Why do you hate me so of sudden?"

"It wasn't fair…It wasn't fair because my hands are full." Sam said. Sanada felt himself smile. "I'm sorry." He said it like it wasn't his fault.

"Sorry isn't good eno-" Sam was cut off when Sanada placed his lips on hers again into another kiss. This time their kiss was longer. Sanada later felt her small soft hands placed around his neck. '_When did she put her bag down?_' he thought. '_Who cares. Looks like I don't need mistletoe after all_.'

* * *

**A/N: The book title(s) and quote things were all made up. except of the chicken cross the road joke.**

**Thank you for all reading _'Sam's Winter Gift.'_ Please tell me what you thought of this Story.  
(Late) Merry Christmas! and (Early) have a Happy New Year!**

Thank you.

_-MyPrinceOishi08_


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